Kismet
by Sabishiioni
Summary: A pair of unlikely allies fight for a common goal, though one may never reach it
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own FFVII

Warnings: Blood

Mindless Babble:

* * *

"Come on, Cloud. I know they pumped you full of the same drugs they gave me. You should be waking up by now…"

Eyes of glowing cobalt fluttered open to find a blur of fiery red leaning over him. Cloud blinked a few times, the blur settling into the features of one who could have been called friend or enemy. Namely a young Turk called…

"Reno! What…" Cloud tried to sit up, only to be pushed back down.

"Take it easy, Hero. The drugs leave a nasty hangover. Just lay there for a bit. Trust me, you'll feel better."

Cloud did as he was told. It wasn't like he had much choice. The world had started to spin as soon as he tried to sit up. Instead, he attempted to remember how he came to be in this situation. He had fuzzy memories of running an errand for Tifa and a sudden pain in the back of his neck. He had fallen then, seeing a grinning Shinra SOLDIER standing over him before blacking out.

Cloud propped himself up on his elbows, this time without any dizziness, and took a good at their surroundings. The earth had long ago dried up and hardened leaving only a barren landscape dotted by rock and petrified plants. No life seemed to exist beyond the two of them. Cloud looked at the other man.

"I can understand why I was attacked but why are you out here?" the spiky blond haired man asked, gesturing to the vast wasteland that surrounded them. The fact that the Turk was unarmed wasn't missed.

Reno gave a nonchalant shoulder shrug, as if to say he didn't care that he had been given a death sentence. "Shinra seems to believe that I betrayed them."

Cloud cocked an eyebrow. "Did you?"

"Maybe."

The ex-SOLIDER gazed at the man that had refused to face him since waking up. Reno appeared different for some reason. The red marks under his eyes seemed brighter, making Cloud realize how pale the Turk was. The goggles that had been perpetually holding back the wild hair now hid eyes that instead of making contact with his own Mako enhanced eyes, stared into nothingness.

"Are you okay?" Cloud asked.

Reno smirked. "Sure. Why wouldn't I be? I was left alone with a guy who has more reasons to kill me then any other."

"I don't want to kill you." Cloud turned away as the other man twisted to stare at him. "I did in the past, but I…"

Curiosity showed on pale features mixed with another emotion that Cloud couldn't name. "But what?"

"But I don't now. You helped those kids, you fought Yazoo and Loz, and you helped me on the highway. I think you've changed since the first time we met."

Reno abruptly stood up, turning away from the younger man. "Yeah, I guess I have…"

Cloud tensed at the other man's sudden movement. Reno was acting stranger then normal. He also seemed to move slower, more stiffly.

"Reno? What hap-"

"We should try to make for that canyon," Reno said, cutting off Cloud's question. "At least it'll offer some shade."

Cloud shook his head and tried to stand. He learned two things in that attempt. One: The knife he always had hidden on his belt was still there and Two: His left arm was a mass of agony. He cried out, more in surprise then from the actual pain.

Reno was down on the ground next to him in an instant. The redhead pushed the loose sleeve of Cloud's jerkin up and winced. The younger warrior looked down and gasped.

"The stigma? But how?"

Reno's head dropped a bit lower. "I'm sorry, Strife. It's because of me…"

Confusion spread over fair skinned features. "I don't understand? How could this be your fault?"

"They tried to inject you with different strains of the disease, but your body rejected all of them. So they made me a carrier. That way it would mutate enough for it to affect you."

Reno slid an arm around Cloud's back and helped the younger man to his feet. His hand brushed the blade but he made no attempt to take it. "Come on. If we hurry, we can make it to the canyon before night fall."

"Doesn't that mean that you were also infected?" Cloud asked, regaining some control of his breathing.

Hair the color of glowing embers brushed ashen cheeks as Reno shook his head. "It's doesn't matter, Strife. I'll make sure that you make it back to Tifa."

The walked like that for some time, Reno supporting a rapidly declining Cloud. They stopped to rest in the minimal shade of a small rock formation. The smaller blond closed his eyes as he tried to swallow the feelings of nausea. The sensation of a bottle touching his lips followed by the taste of clean water running over his tongue surprised him and his eyes flew open. Reno sat next to him, holding the small flask, although in his confused state, Cloud saw black hair framing a face that glowed with self-assuredness.

"Zack?"

Reno withdrew the water bottle. "Sorry, I'm not you SOLDIER buddy. Just an ex-Turk."

Cloud blinked a few times, his vision clearing. He blushed lightly in embarrassment. "Sorry Reno. Don't know why I thought you were him."

Reno shrugged before sliding a hand up Cloud's shirt. The blond yelped in surprise and tried to back away. The other man sighed and turned his arm so he could see Cloud's chest.

"That's what I thought," he muttered. "It's spreading fast."

Cloud felt his heart sink as he looked down at his own body. The smudged black lines were creeping down the flesh, extending across his chest and abdomen. At this rate, he would be dead by this time the next day.

Reno let the shirt slid back into place. "I'm not going to let you die, Strife."

"Why do you care so much?" asked Cloud, a smile devoid of humor on his pale lips.

Reno smirked, effectively hiding his worries behind a mask of confidence. "'Cause I don't want to see that beautiful babe of yours cry."

Cloud laughed. "I'm beginning to think you have a little thing for Tifa…"

"Well, any woman that can dish it out as good as she gets, deserves my a-"

Reno was cut off by Cloud pushing him to the side a second before he felt a breeze brush the back of his neck. He turned in time to see one of the sand creatures that Yazoo had once used in Midgard just miss him. The creature landed and turned its massive maw towards the humans who scramble away.

"Now what do we do?" Reno asked, slightly panicking. The last time he had seen these creatures, he had at least been armed.

"Try to distract it," Cloud replied. "I'll go after it from the side."

Reno spared the blade master a glance. Seeing the light of the setting sun glinting off the blade, he sighed, resigning himself to the role of bait. "Alright, but hurry it up!" He dodged to the side, throwing a small rock at the creature.

As soon as the monster turned away, Cloud attempted to strike its head but his weakened body decided on that exact moment to give out on him. Pain flared in the arm that wielded the blade and he dropped it. The man who had faced the dreaded one winged angel, not once but twice, fell to the ground, his cry of anguish catching the beast' attention.

Reno immediately comprehended what had happened. As the creature advanced on the still form that was his only companion, Reno did the only thing he could; he tackled the thing. Razor like claws racked his back as the monster twisted in his grasp. Reno pushed away and landed near Cloud and more importantly, the knife.

"Alright. I always figured I'd go down fighting…" Reno mumbled, feeling the blood run down his back.

"Too bad you won't get that chance."

The voice was both familiar and yet unfamiliar. Reno looked down at where Cloud lay and was surprised to see a large, red lion-like creature standing over the man.

"Red… no. Your name is Nanaki, isn't?"

Russet eyes widened in astonishment. "I did not think a Turk would know that name."

Reno returned his focus to the sand creature. "Yeah, well, I've learned a lot in the past couple of weeks."

Nanaki shook his head, the crystals entangled in the thick mane glistening in the fading light. "Rest and protect Cloud. I will take care of this abomination."

Reno nodded and collapsed next to the other human as Nanaki leapt at the monster. True to his word, the felne destroyed the monster in a matter of minutes. He returned to the pair.

"Can you walk?"

Reno had been wondering that too. He felt dizzy from the blood loss but was determined not to embarrass himself in front of the one who had saved him. He clambered to his feet, trying very hard not to sway. By the time the world had stopped spinning, Nanaki had managed to get Cloud situated on his own back.

"Follow me. There is a cave not far from here where you can rest for the night."

"I don't think Strife has much time for resting," Reno replied, stumbling into motion beside the intelligent animal.

"Do not worry about that for now," Nanaki said, looking up at the Turk. "Things will work out. I promise you this."

Reno would have shrugged, if there had been any amount of energy left in his body that wasn't being used to put one foot in front of the other.

* * *

A gentle nudge that sent waves of pain through his body woke Reno. He moaned in response as he opened his eyes. Glowing brown eyes met his.

"Get up. Your ride will be here soon."

Reno sat up and looked at Nanaki. "What ride?"

A grin that revealed sharp teeth appeared on the furry face. "There is a delivery truck that goes to the outlying towns that uses a road a short walk away. I will take you there and make sure you and Cloud are given a ride back to Midgard."

Reno glanced to where the spiky-haired man slept fitfully. "So long as Strife makes it back to Tifa."

Nanaki watched as the Turk, no- ex-Turk, tried to rouse the ex-SOLDIER. "You are different from when I met you last."

"Yeah, that's what Strife said too."

"No. You are physically different."

Hidden eyes turned to face Nanaki. "How far is this road?" Reno asked, intentionally changing the subject.

"An hour's walk."

Reno sighed and slung one of Cloud's arms over his shoulder. "If he wakes up, I don't want him to find out about me."

"Why? You risked your life to save his…"

"Because some lives are more important then other's."

The cryptic answer puzzled Nanaki but he didn't question it. Instead, he quietly led the way to the dirt road that led through the canyon and into Midgard. Again, the red creature had spoken true as the first rays of light crept over the horizon, a small pick-up truck appeared.

"Wait here," Nanaki commanded. He bounded gracefully towards the vehicle and, in a powerful leap, landed on the hood of the truck. Reno heard the driver scream, slamming on the brakes, even from where he stood with Cloud. Nanaki motioned for them to approach.

"Will you take these two to the city?" the creature asked the driver.

The man pried his vision from the terrifying sight on his hood and looked out his side window. His eyes darkened as he recognized. Reno. "I'll take the blond one but there's no room for bloodthirsty Turks! Especially not for that mass murdering son-of-a-bitch!"

Reno felt as if the man had sucker punched him. That probably would have hurt less. He looked away, trying to get a mask up to hide the pain. "That's fair enou-"

"NO!" Nanaki growled. "He is a Turk no longer and is now this man's guardian! You will take BOTH of them!"

The man looked about ready to need new shorts as the very sharp teeth came closer to the soft skin of his throat. "Alright, alright! I'll take them both. But I warn you, anything funny and I kick them both out!'

"Acceptable." Nanaki jumped down from the hood as Reno helped Cloud into the bed of the truck. He hooked his paws over the side to say his farewells. "Cloud once spoke of another time he traveled like this."

Reno smiled sadly. "I know. But that time, he traveled with one he could call brother."

Red fur swayed. "Perhaps the two of you are bound in a brotherhood of a different sort."

A bit of humor crept into Reno's voice. "You know, you're way too smart to be the animal Hojo thought you were."

Nanaki returned the expression. "And you are too kind to be a Turk."

Reno laughed and waved goodbye as the truck started down the road.

Brown eyes watch the dust cloud until it had settled. "He is in pain."

A shadowed pulled away from the rest and stood next to the four legged creature. "I know. I will follow and make sure Cloud makes it to Midgard."

"I wasn't talking about him, Vincent, and you know that."

The raven haired man in the red coat bowed his head. "I had thought we had ended that nightmare."

"Apparently, the nightmare just moved to a new host."


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not own FFVII

Warnings: Tissue, Goodbye

Mindless Babble:

* * *

Reno nearly had to tuck and roll with Cloud as the driver dropped them off in front of the dilapidated church. He tried to thank the man, but was left talking to a puff of dust as the truck took off. Reno shook his head and walked into the church half carrying/ half dragging his companion.

"I hope this works," Reno muttered. He paused a moment to look around. The first time he had been here, he had been on a mission to kidnap a flower girl. He tried to swallow the guilt as he remembered what had happened to her. It only worsened when Cloud, perhaps sensing where he was, whispered the girl's name.

"Aeris."

The former Turk felt even worse then when the truck driver had recognized him. He had forgotten the Cloud had fallen for her. And he had a hand in killing her.

"I'm sorry." The two words sounded so cheap in comparison to what he actually felt. He moved towards the pools stopping at the edge.

The water was so pure, it seemed to be made of liquid crystal. Yellow and white flower petals still floated across the mirror like surface, almost as if to remind the one time assassin's sins. The silence that surrounded the pair felt as if it were almost tangible. Reno ignored the feelings of claustrophobia and, picking up Cloud, stepped into the water.

His breath was stolen away as pain lanced through his body. He pulled Cloud closer to him, afraid of dropping him before they reached deeper water. Tears streaming down his face, Reno plunged forward struggling to ignore the increasing pain. By the time the water had reached his hips, the redhead could barely form a coherent thought. The only one he could keep was to not let Cloud drown. With that, he released his burden, making sure to keep the blond head above the water.

Reno watched as the dark lines of the disease glowed on the otherwise pale skin before it seemed to brush of like some sort of radiant dust. In a matter of seconds it was over. Mako blue eyes fluttered open.

"What… the church? How did…" Cloud finally noticed the Turk and stood up. "Reno, what's wrong?"

The slender body was being wracked with so much pain, it was all Reno could do to keep standing. Trembling, he tried to back out of the water only to have his weakened legs go out from under him. The pain multiplied as he was completely submerged. The scream of agony that escaped from pale lips echoed through the church as Cloud pulled him from the water.

As soon as his feet hit the floor boards, Reno pushed away from his rescuer, stumbling into the shadows. At that same moment, the doors to the church flew open. Both men looked up to see a beautiful brunette racing towards the ex-SOLDIER that knelt on the floor. Two others followed at a less frantic pace.

"Cloud! I was so worried about you!" Tifa flung her arms around the soaked blond. Cloud readily returned the hug, surprised by how happy he was to have her in his arms. "What happened to you?'

Cloud pulled away from the girl, but slid his hands around hers. "Apparently Rufus had a change of heart about me. They tried to infect me again with the Geostigma."

Tifa's face loss it color. "Are you alright? Did the water help you?'

Cloud smiled at her concern. "I'm fine." He tried to stand up to prove the point, but found that the sickness had left him weaker then he thought. Tifa's heightened reflexes were the only things that saved him from hitting his head on the ground as he passed out.

Tifa sighed as she looked up to see Yuffie grinning down at her. "What would he do without you?" the young ninja asked. She helped the other girl lift the dead weight that was Cloud, taking one arm over her shoulder while Tifa took the other

"Probably hit his head a lot more!" Tifa turned and looked at the third member of their party, the one that had led her here. "Are you coming, Vincent?"

"There is one more here to take back with us." The raven haired man stepped from the darkness, holding up an unsteady Turk at his side.

"Reno!" Both girls screamed the name, causing Cloud to wince.

"What are you doing here?" Tifa asked, immediately suspicious.

Reno whispered a single word that only Vincent heard. The older man shook his head. "It's nothing you need to worry about, Tifa. Reno was the one that brought Cloud here."

A blush crept into the woman's cheeks. "I… I'm sorry Reno. I shouldn't…"

"It's okay, Lockheart. I wouldn't trust me either."

Tifa frowned at the response but was reminded of her first priority when Cloud's breath hitched. "Come on. Let's get you guys back to the bar."

She and Yuffie took Cloud out to the waiting truck followed by Reno and Vincent, the smaller of the two succumbing to the lull of sleep.

* * *

A few hours later, Tifa found a shadow leaning against the window in her room staring outside. The stars were hidden by the veil of thick clouds. What little light coming from the streetlamps below the window outlined a slender frame, nude from the waist up. One arm wrapped around the opposite shoulder while the other protected the stomach. Tifa moved to turn on the lights.

"Please don't."

Her slender hand dropped back to her side. "Reno? Why are you in my room? In the dark? Alone?"

Pale lips twitched in an attempt to actually smile. "Sorry Lockheart. I didn't know this was your room. I just… the kids were in their room and everyone else was with Strife. I didn't want to intrude." A pause then, "How is he?" The man at the widow never turned away from the gathering storm clouds.

"Sound asleep." Tifa noticed the slight tremor in Reno's body. "Are you hurt?"

Reno actually did smile, but it was filled with too much pain to be an honest one. "The day I 'betrayed' Shinra, Rufus had me removed from his office by four SOLDIERs. I thought they were taking me to the holding cells but they took me down to the labs instead. Before I was handed over to Hojo's old assistants, I was stripped naked and my arms chained to the floor. There, I was tortured- beaten, burned, whipped and poisoned. I could've handled it, I'm a Turk. I'm trained to deal with stuff like that. But I looked up and saw them…"

Despite herself, Tifa found herself asking, "Who?"

"My family. Tseng. Elena. R… Rude." He choked on that last name. "They stood there and watched! They must've thought I'd betrayed them, as well. But, I didn't."

"Reno…"

"Shortly after that, I was given to the protégés. You can see what they did." Reno finally turned to face Tifa. He had taken off his goggles, the once hidden glow of Mako infused eyes now revealed. "It was a more intense version of what Cloud went through."

Tifa's hands flew to her mouth in shock and horror. Her eyes filled with tears.

"For three weeks I was suspended in a tube of Mako, taken out only to be a lab rat for a bunch of experiments, tests and to be injected with Geostigma," Reno continued, his voice wavering. "I've forgotten what it's like to not be in pain."

Something fell from his hand, startling Tifa. The moon broke through the storm that had been gathering for a moment, bathing the room in lunar light revealing the knife that Reno had held onto after the fight with the creature in the wastelands. The blade was tinted red. Tifa worried what she would see as her eyes traveled up the man's body. It was worse then she feared. His chest was covered in both old scars and new wounds, the blood running down to pool at his feet. Both arms were bathed in red that ran from hundreds of self inflicted slashes. Black lines crept under the lines of red.

Reno suddenly pushed himself away from the wall. "I don't belong here. I'm sorry Tifa…" He stumbled forward, intent on leaving. He didn't get far.

Seconds later found Tifa cradling the Turks body. "Hang on Reno; I know we've got a Heal Materia downstairs, just hold on!" She screamed for Yuffie to grab the small orb but the man she held shook his head, red hair brushing the wooden floor.

"Don't waste it. I'm already dead. They made sure of that," Reno sighed as the edges of his vision darkened. "Least I got one dream to come true…"

Tears streamed down Tifa's cheeks, though she doubted the Turk could see them. "What dream was that?"

"I'll die in a beautiful woman's arms." His eyes closed for the last time and his chest ceased to rise.

Tifa stared in shock at the shell of a man she hardly even knew. She felt a pair of arms wrap around her shoulders and knew it was Cloud, offering some of his own strength to her.

"He's gone, Cloud. He died believing that he was alone, that nobody cared. Not even his family…"

Vincent stood in the doorway, an arm around the young woman from Wutai, her face buried in the man's red cape trying to hide the tears. The small glowing ball that she had retrieved from the bar was resting at her feet, dropped when she realized that some wounds couldn't be cured. Both had heard the story and Vincent finally really understood Nanaki's words.

The three people dressed in blue suits that had gathered behind the pair had only heard Tifa's words. For one, it was too much. Rude pushed past Vincent and tried to reach his former partner. He was stopped dead in his tracks by a powerful arm wrapping around his chest.

"Sorry, Rude, but you know I can't let you touch him." Tseng's own eyes held a pain so deep, the dark skinned man had to look away.

Tifa glared at the pair of Turks. "Why? Because he was a traitor in your eyes?"

"No." A soft voice spoke as Elena joined her two comrades. "Because of the Mako conditioning we received when we became Turks. This strand of Geostigma only attacks those that have Mako in their systems."

"His body will have to be burned," Tseng said, the tremor in his voice belaying emotions that were running rampant within him. "So the stigma won't be able to be used again."

"How did this happen?" Tifa asked, her tears falling upon pallid features that had once glowed with life. "How could you stand there and watch him being tortured?" Her voice dropped to a whisper. "How could you abandon him?"

Tseng saw the effect the woman's words had on his co-workers. Elena looked crestfallen while Rude looked ready to plunge the knife that Reno had used into his own heart. He took both of their shoulders and pushed them through the door.

"Elena, take Rude downstairs and give him a shot of the strongest stuff you can find. And then give yourself the same." He waited until he heard their footsteps on the stairs. He turned his attention on the rest that were gathered in the room. "I would rather discuss this elsewhere."

Cloud could see the man was hurting inside. "Tifa, take the others downstairs. I'll be there in a moment."

Tifa nodded mutely. Cloud released her, letting her join their friends. His eyes met Vincent's, asking the former Turk to look after the two girls. Vincent agreed, wrapping his free arm around the woman to guide her to the stairs.

Tseng watched them go. Then he knelt next to the body of his friend, his brother in arms. He closed his eyes and whispered a chant in his native language. Cloud recognized it as a prayer to guide the dead into paradise. "Watching was our warning. Reno didn't see the armed SOLDIERs guarding us…"

Then he stood and without looking back, left the room.

* * *

Cloud found a somber and uneasy bunch when he came down the stairs. Rude and Elena were sitting together at a table, Tseng standing behind them, creating a broken circle. Tifa sat at the same table with them, a bottle of 151 sitting between them with four tiny glasses surrounding it. Vincent was still holding a trembling Yuffie by bar.

"First off, Rufus had nothing to do with this," Tseng stated. "The cook that prepared his meals was poisoning him with mind altering drugs. Unfortunately, we didn't find that out until this afternoon."

"Then Reno never betrayed you?" Tifa accused, her eyes flashing dangerously.

Rude shook his head. "Reno would never betray Shinra. It wasn't until last week when we got the assignment he refused that we realized something was really going wrong."

"But we never gave up on Reno!" Elena choked out. "We tried to rescue him…"

The four friends watched the layers of harshness peeled away, revealing the deep bond of the Turks. It treaded waters as profound as their own. Elena found herself in the embrace of Tseng, while Rude held her shaking hands in his own.

"What was the assignment Reno refused?" Cloud asked softly.

"To kill you," Rude said even softer.

"It was part of the cook's plan. He was going to have Rufus kill each one of us and then take away the drugs." Tseng swallowed. "The cook knew that none of us would go after you so it was the perfect assignment to make us look like we were traitors to a messed up mind."

"But why?" Everyone looked up at the new voice that had joined in. Yuffie was standing on her own, tears still betraying her. Her dark eyes were aflame with anger. "Why did he hate you all so much?"

Elena's answer sent a chill through everyone. "His family lived in sector seven."

"What will happen to him?" Vincent asked, though he already knew the answer.

"He was taken care of," Rude growled.

"And Rufus?"

Rude looked at Cloud. "He doesn't remember anything from the past month. We don't want to tell him the truth…"

The blond warrior nodded. "Understandable. It would kill him to know that he was the cause of one of his Turk's death."

A moment passed before Tifa reached a hand across the table, lightly coming to rest of Elena and Rude's hands. "Elena, I'm sorry for what I said to you. I didn't realize…"

The female Turk let a ghost smile reach her lips. "It's alright, Tifa. What you said was true in Reno's eyes. How could you think anything different?"

"Still,"

Elena shook her head. "Rude told me that you really scared Reno once…"

Tifa blinked in surprise. "Huh? When?"

Rude chuckled. "The night Cloud left to find those kids in the Forgotten City. You were screaming at him and Reno thought you were going to kill Cloud. Reno was ready to run."

Elena joined with a small laugh. "The only thing that kept him there was Rude."

Tifa giggled as she remembered the night. "I do remember that. I also remember the way the two of you high tailed it out of there afterwards!"

Yuffie spoke up then, her tears finally drying in the warmth of good memories. "I remember when you guys helped to save me and Elena on Da-chao. I wondered how someone so obnoxious looking as Reno would have made it into Shinra's elite guard."

Tseng snorted. "I wondered that too."

The rest of the night was filled with laughter, tears and most of all, memories.

* * *

Rude found Elena sitting a grassy knoll not far from the Forgotten City, a place people now thought of as haunted because of Kadaj and his gang. That was where they had said goodbye to their friend for he last time. The flames had consumed the shrouded body quickly leaving only ashes which Cloud had gathered. The Turks had decided to scatter them over the ocean, a place Reno had always enjoyed going to.

"I loved him," Elena said as Rude sat down next to her. "I loved him and never told him that. I always chastised him for his sloppy appearance, or the reckless way he threw himself into every fight. I guess I'll never be able to tell him now."

A pair of powerfully built arms wrapped around her shoulders and gently pulled her backward so she leaned against a solid chest. "He knew that, Elena," Tseng said softly, wishing he could dry the woman's tears with his words alone. "We all loved him and he returned that love in the only way he knew how."

"He could never just say the words. He had to prove it by fighting , protecting us," Rude said, staring up at the sky, thinking how close it came to being the same color as his partner's eyes.

"All of us." Cloud flopped down next to Rude, not even looking at the bigger man.

"He helped us even though a few years ago we were at each other's throats," Tifa said as she sat down next to Elena.

Yuffie didn't use words to express her feelings. She merely stood behind her kinsman, letting her nimble fingers rest on his broad shoulders.

Vincent stood behind the entire group, his arms crossed. He wasn't one to show emotion. Just the fact that he was there spoke volumes of how he felt though. He knew what Reno had felt, being used as a lab rat and not really understanding why. A tear slipped down his cheek, unnoticed by the others.

A warm breeze dried Elena's face and she gasped in surprise. It had felt like slender fingers brushing her cheek.

* * *

"_See, they're fine. You can leave them now."_

Reno looked up from where he knelt in front of Elena to the pair that stood waiting for him. "_Yeah, I guess you're right. They never really needed me, anyway."_

The woman sighed in response. "_That's not true. You were the one who brought them together. They're closer then ever because of that love._

"_This was your fate."_

Reno looked at the group of people gathered on the hill. He noticed the subtle things. Tifa's hand on Elena's, silently supporting the only female Turk. The way Cloud's hand rested on Rude's shoulder. The young thief's fingers resting on his boss' shoulders. He was the only one to witness Vincent's mask break.

"_They're not alone,"_ the dark haired man said. "_And you'll see them again someday."_

"_Just so long as it's not for a very long time,"_ Reno replied standing up and joining the other two. "_Alright, I'm ready to go now."_

The woman in pink led the way into the whiteness followed by the man with the spiky black hair. Reno took one last look at the group before following.

"_I understand now. I… I love you."_

_-fin-_


End file.
